1 Timothy 6:1-10 - Godly Pursuit of Contentment

1 Timothy 6:1-10

Honor Masters

1 Let as many bondservants as are under the yoke count their own masters worthy of all honor, so that the name of God and His doctrine may not be blasphemed. 2 And those who have believing masters, let them not despise them because they are brethren, but rather serve them because those who are benefited are believers and beloved. Teach and exhort these things.

Error and Greed

3 If anyone teaches otherwise and does not consent to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which accords with godliness, 4 he is proud, knowing nothing, but is obsessed with disputes and arguments over words, from which come envy, strife, reviling, evil suspicions, 5 useless wranglings of men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain. From such withdraw yourself.

6 Now godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. 8 And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content. 9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

As Timothy was reminded to teach those he ministered the gospel to, we also are reminded of these same things as we follow and serve our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  If we are an actual slave in parts of the world where this still happens or if we view our employer as the equivalent whom we serve willingly for pay, either way the are called to honor the one we serve under.  We do this to honor the name of our Lord God in heaven whom we all fall under as the commandment to honor our father and mother in Exodus 20:12 says for our well-being in life extends to loving God with all we are and our neighbors as ourselves (Matthew 22:37-39) with honor and respect to reflect well on our Father in heaven.  The last thing we desire is to inspire disrespect and dishonor to our Lord by our attitudes and actions.  This is especially important when our masters or employers are brethren in Christ whom we benefit by our labors as beloved family under our common Father we honor as we do to them.  Do we teach and encourage these things among one another?  We should, just as we need to agree to wholesome words of doctrine according to the scriptures we learn and practice for the Lord’s honor and glory.  If we do not echo the words of Jesus then we are left with our own pride to speak our own minds and words which are not godly by definition and end up arguing about our own opinions and beliefs in what does not matter for eternity.  Such arguments yield bad fruit as mentioned here, “envy, strife, reviling, evil suspicions, useless wranglings (perverse disputing, useless occupation)” which are grown out of the corruption of our old fallen sin nature apart from the truth of God’s word and will of His commands.  We are told that those who pursue these things do not have the truth because they are completely destitute of it as they attempt to use their works and pet beliefs for spiritual and material gain.  Let us not be like them in the least, but avoid them after warning them once or the consequences.  Evil company corrupts even our good and godly habits as 1 Corinthians 15:33 tells us plainly.  Instead of these pursuits equivalent to grasping after the wind, we are urged to have contentment in godly behavior and thoughts to rule our lives.  When we realize all we have has been and will be given by God as grace to us and that we did not inherit anything of worth when we were born (Romans 5:12, 18-19) in sin, and take nothing with us into the grave apart from our faith and trust in Christ’s work on our behalf, then we understand true contentment in our Lord (Philippians 4:11-13) and His provisions of grace.  Striving to fill our earthly pockets with wealth is only filthy lucre in the end which is left behind as we meet our Father who we should instead bring honor and not dishonor apart from our empty desires (Ecclesiastes 4:6, 1 John 2:15-17).  Who and what we serve (Matthew 6:24, 1 Timothy 6:17-19) really matters for eternity.  Contentment acknowledges the grace of God and His providential provision as more than enough to value and pursue.  Desires to fill our pockets that have holes only leads to a sense of real and harmful loss because desiring and loving wealth and possessions is where evil takes root and grows to consume our lives both now and forevermore.  Why then stray from the faith of contentment in God’s good provision into greed and run into only sorrow in the end?  The pursuit of God in Christ is where true riches are discovered and uncovered.  This is our godly pursuit of contentment.